Golf: Campbell charges to third title

.

Michael Campbell's golfing season just keeps getting sweeter.

The in-form Wellington professional made The Vines course, near Perth, his personal playground as he clinched the $A1.6 million ($2.1 million) Heineken Classic tournament last night with a sizzling four-round score of 20-under 268.

Campbell took the field apart to win by a record six strokes, earning himself $A288,000, and continued his rich vein of form this summer. His season's tally is now $A747,510, almost $A265,000 clear of the three-year-old Australasian Tour record held by Australia's Peter Lonard.

Campbell, who had opened the Tour with a victory in the Johnnie Walker Classic in Taiwan, was following up from winning the New Zealand Open at Paraparaumu Beach eight days ago.

"I'm lost for words. In the last seven tournaments I've won three, what more can I say,'' Campbell said last night.

He admitted he had played "very, very close'' to his finest golf over the four days.

"My ball striking was fantastic and my putting was great. It's been very, very solid for the last couple of weeks.''

He went into the final round with a two-shot cushion over Denmark's Thomas Bjorn - the 1998 winner - yesterday and was uncatchable as he produced a dazzling 6-under 66.

Even a brief, violent thunderstorm couldn't halt Campbell's march. Just before the stoppage he had shown brilliant touch by holing out of the bunker beside the 15th green for a birdie three and with Bjorn taking a par, the lead had gone to three shots.

After the resumption, Campbell birdied the par-3 16th while Bjorn plopped his ball into the water, and the lead had ballooned to five. A final birdie on the 18th rounded out a memorable week for Campbell, with Bjorn hanging on for second.

Campbell has been the dominant figure on the Tour, and in addition to increasing his lead on the Order of Merit, he has taken a strong early grip on the European Tour's Order as well.

The course record at The Vines had been 15-under, set by Spain's Miguel Martin in 1997, but Campbell decimated that mark and his win yesterday made him the first triple champion on the Tour since Australian Peter Senior in the 1989-90 season.

Scotland's Alistair Forsyth took third at 13-under, South African Ernie Els was fourth one shot back while New Zealanders Greg Turner and David Smail finished well.

Turner was sixth with 8-under 280 while Smail had a share of seventh one stroke behind.